Imran Khan taken off US-bound plane in Toronto

Toronto: Pakistani cricketer-turned-politician Imran Khan was taken off from a US-bound flight for questioning in Toronto on Friday, a media report said.

Mr Khan had boarded an American Airlines plane from Toronto to New York to speak at a fundraising dinner in Long Island City, the Toronto Sun reported.

He had earlier given a politically-charged speech in Brampton on Thursday about the political turmoil in Pakistan. He was questioned at the Toronto Pearson International Airport.

“I was taken off from plane and interrogated by US Immigration in Canada on my views on drones. My stance is known. Drone attacks must stop,” Mr Khan tweeted Friday.

The questioning lasted about an hour before he was allowed to board another flight to New York, the newspaper said.

Mr Khan, founder of Pakistan’s Tehreek-e-Insaf (PTI) party, took part earlier this month in a protest against US drone strikes on his home turf.

US Customs and Border Protection (CBP) said they cannot divulge any information on particular cases due to privacy laws.

Mr Khan may have been interrogated because of groups protesting his entrance to the US, the Sun said.

The American Islamic Leadership Coalition from Phoenix wrote to Secretary of State Hilary Clinton earlier this week, pressuring her to revoke the US visa granted to Mr Khan because of his sympathetic views towards the Taliban.